Albus Potter and the Ring of Morgan
by Queen Riza
Summary: A mysterious organization. Unexpected friendships. A Sorting unlike anything seen before. Clues from the past that don't quite add up. Albus expected to have a quiet first year, but when confronted with a mystery that begs to be solved, he discovers a truth that no one had imagined.
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling. I am not J.K. Rowling. 'Nuff said.

The man paced the room. Outside, the rain was relentless and the wind seemed to be moaning _"Guilty, guilty."_

"Haven't done anything yet," he muttered, but doubt was eating away at him. _Was this the right thing to do?_ He jumped as a door creaked open.

"It's you, right?" the newcomer was tall, but in all other ways an average man. He was young, about the same age as the first man. His hair was dark and cut close to his scalp; his eyes were a warm, inviting shade of brown.

"Of course."

"Oh good," the newcomer laughed nervously, "Never can be sure with you, Te-"

"I thought we agreed that this would remain anonymous," the first man interjected.

"Of course, of course," the newcomer was laughing again, a nervous habit he had since their first year, the first man noted dryly. "Unless you change your mind…"

"I might eventually," the first man confessed. "If my conscience clears… I know this is the right thing to do, but, what you told me, that's all this is right? You don't have an ulterior motive, do you?"

"Merlin's beard, you worry too much. Don't fret; I don't have any other motives besides what we discussed. As for this remaining anonymous, we're the only ones here."

"The Ministry could be anywhere…"

"Oh I forgot, you grew up completely surrounded by Aurors. You were taught paranoia from the cradle," the second man smirked, "Alright, I'll humor you; let's have code names. I'll be Mr. Black and you'll be Mr. Yellow."

"I want to be Mr. Black," grinned Mr. Yellow.

"Not fair; I have more Black blood than you, if your theory is correct, which I doubt."

"Oh, alright," Mr. Yellow smiled; he was beginning to be reminded of Hogwarts, when this entire affair was just a childish fantasy the two of them had concocted and code names seemed, to their young minds, a necessity, "if only for the sake of my theory, which, by the way, is entirely correct."

Mr. Black allowed himself a smile, but then grew more serious.

"Do you have it?" his voice uncharacteristically low.

Mr. Yellow's grin also vanished, "Yes."

They stood there for a long moment, until Mr. Black said, impatiently, "Well, where is it?"

Mr. Yellow slowly reached for the parchment in his pocket, "Here," he said, his voice catching in his throat, becoming increasingly aware of the wind and its ominous message. _Guilty, guilty._ But he wasn't guilty, he reminded himself, this was for the greater good. But still, the feeling of culpability was working its way into his body, the feeling that this was wrong. He handed the parchment to Mr. Black.

"_Finally._" The look on Mr. Black's face was disturbing, possessive, as he muttered the incantation and thrust the parchment in Mr. Yellow's face. "Well, do you see it?"

He studied the parchment, and could hear the impatient tapping of his partner's feet, but his search was unyielding. "I-I can't find it; it really is just a myth," he stuttered, his face falling. They would have to find some other way to complete their mission, and after all those hours they had spent studying in the library, deciphering the legends. But Mr. Black didn't seem nearly as disappointed as Mr. Yellow would have expected; he had been, after all, the leader of their efforts. Instead, he seemed to be contemplating something, his brow furrowed in concentration. Finally he spoke.

"I was afraid of this," he said.

"What do you mean?"

"You know the story, who is supposed to be able to see the Clue?"

"The Heir, but that's me, we've already established that."

"Unless…"

Mr. Yellow frowned, thinking, "Unless, unless… Unless there's only one Heir, not four. So that wouldn't be me, it would be the first child born."

"And that's-" Mr. Black began, but Mr. Yellow already knew the answer.

"Potter."


	2. The Train

Disclaimer: Yeah… Still not J.K. Rowling.

"You excited?"

Albus Potter nodded wordlessly in response to his cousin's question.

"Let's find a compartment," he said to Rose.

"Kay."

He and Rose sat down in an empty compartment near the back of the train. They discussed Quidditch for a while, but quickly exhausted the topic. After all, Albus didn't particularly care for the sport (he made sure not let any other member of his family know this besides Rose, because she wasn't just his cousin; she was his best friend. She was also the only person in the world that he trusted enough not to tell his secret to the rest of his Quidditch loving family or the press. After all, it wouldn't do to have the son of the youngest Seeker in history and one of the Chasers for the Holyhead Harpies to "not care for Quidditch") and Rose's team was the Chudley Cannons so there wasn't much to discuss about them besides a friendly

_How are the Cannons doing this season? _

_ Failing miserably. But next year they'll win. Next year will be our year._

They had this conversation every single year and so far "our year" had yet to come. But Albus hadn't informed Rose of this. Being brutally murdered did not sound particularly pleasant to him.

They sat in a nervous silence for a few minutes until Albus brought up the Sorting Ceremony.

"Are you nervous?" he asked.

"Not really," she replied, biting her lip and shaking slightly, showing Albus that she was nervous. Very much so, in fact, "it's just that-"

"Just that what?"

As Rose opened her mouth to reply, a blonde boy opened the door.

"Can I sit here?" he asked. "Everywhere else is full." Albus and Rose nodded as the boy introduced himself.

"The name's Malfoy, Scorpius Malfoy."

Albus resisted the urge to ask, "Not related to any Bonds, are you?" His dad had shown him quite a few Muggle movies. Scorpius did a remarkable James Bond impression.

Rose looked at Albus.

"Malfoy," she repeated. "Didn't my dad say that Malfoys are bad?"

Scorpius scowled.

"Who does your dad think he is, anyway?"

"Ron Weasley," she said shrugging. Then she pointed at Albus. "But his dad's _Harry Potter._"

"Really," said Scorpius and looked Albus up and down, making the latter feel very uncomfortable, "Impressive."

Albus could feel his face start to turn red.

"My dad doesn't like your dad very much," Scorpius suddenly confessed to Albus.

"Why not?" asked Albus, feeling rather offended. People usually loved his father.

Scorpius looked him, seemed to consider something for a moment, and then said, "No reason." The three of them sat there for a bit, twiddling their thumbs and looking out the window and Albus, feeling rather awkward, changed the subject.

"Anyway, I'm Al and this is Rose. We were just talking about the Sorting. Rose said she wasn't nervous, but she was starting to say something else. You want to finish talking, Rosie?"

It was Rosie's turn to turn red.

"Uh, well, you see, it's just that- I DON'T WANT TO BE IN GRYFFINDOR!" she shouted, quite possibly permanently damaging Albus' eardrums "Everyone expects me to be in it, but I think it sounds like a stupid house for want-to-be heroes. I'd rather be in any other house, even Slytherin."

Albus was speechless; Rose would rather be in _Slytherin_ than _Gryffindor_.

"I really want to be in Ravenclaw, that's where the people with real brains are. But my whole family's been in Gryffindor, so I'll probably end up there too," she said with the tone of a martyr.

"The Sorting Hat isn't going to put you in a House where you don't belong just because your family is there." said Scorpius, "It'll put you in the right House, regardless of family."

"What House do you think you'll be in?" Albus asked Scorpius.

"Slytherin," he answered confidently, "My whole family's been in it."

Rose and Albus continued to talk to Scorpius, who proved to be quite interesting. He and Rose had a heated argument over Quidditch (Scorpius, apparently, had no qualms about telling Rose that the Cannon's year would _never_ come and, come on, _everyone _knows that the Appleby Arrows are the best team anyway) and they discovered he shared Albus' love of Chocolate Frog Cards. The three of them spent the train ride talking, laughing, and eating Bertie Bott's Every Flavored Beans. Finally, Rose stood up.

"We should probably change into our robes," she said.

She had already put on her robes, but she left the compartment to "protect the innocence of her eyes" which Albus and Scorpius were grateful for. After she did so, they took off their Muggle clothing and put on their brand new Hogwarts robes.

"Hey," said Scorpius, glancing down at the empty spot on his robes that would soon be covered by a Hogwarts House badge, "You never said what House you want to be in."

"Gryffindor," Albus replied, without even pausing to think.

"Typical," said Scorpius, rolling his eyes.


	3. The Sorting

A/N: I feel the need to apologize for the Sorting Hat's song, believe it or not, this is the best one I came up with. There was one that I might publish as one shot so people can bang their heads against the wall. Anyways, its the Sorting! OH THE SUSPENSE! I don't know if i'm going to surprise anyone or not, so tell me in your review (hint hint).

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><p>Disclaimer: This is J.K. Rowling's. All of this belongs to her. The Sorting Hat. Hogwarts. The stool the students sit on while they get sorted. Albus. Rose. Scorpius. Hagrid. Everything is her's. And I'm not her.<p>

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><p>"FIRST YEARS! GET O'ER 'ERE!"<p>

Rose headed toward the voice of the Hogwarts Gamekeeper, Hagrid. The first years were obediently boarding the small boats that would that would take them to the school. Rose got on a boat with Scorpius, Albus, and a dark haired girl who introduced herself as Mandy Markham.

The boats rowed themselves across the lake and Rose looked at Hogwarts Castle for the first time.

"Wow." She wasn't sure who had said it, but she agreed with the statement whole -heartedly.

The castle gleamed in the dark light of the night. Its twisted towers, dimly lit windows, and stars twinkling above it made it look, well, magical.

Hagrid led Rose and the other first years off the boats and into the castle, where he left them with Professor Longbottom, the Deputy Headmaster, who briefly explained the Sorting Ceremony to them.

Rose knew Professor Longbottom through her parents, he had been a friend of theirs back in their Hogwarts days. Although Professor Longbottom had always insisted on being called Neville, Rose had always refused to, knowing that one day he would be her Herbology professor, and it would be unspeakably embarrassing if she accidently called a professor by his first name.

He led them into the Great Hall, where all the other students were waiting. In front of the room, resting on a stool, sat the Sorting Hat. The first years hardly dared to breathe when the Hat began to sing.

_Years and years and years ago_

_When no castle stood at this spot_

_There lived four wizards known for_

_Their kindess, chivalry, ambition, and thought _

_Lady Ravenclaw, the eagle_

_A woman clever and bright_

_Thought up the idea for a school_

_But to build it needed might_

_Sir Gryffindor, the lion_

_Famed in the tales of yore_

_Built up the school and created me_

_And thus made House Gryffindor_

_Lord Slytherin, the snake_

_A man of cunning and ambition_

_His story is one _

_To which you'd be advised to listen_

_And sweet Hufflepuff, the badger_

_Always last but never to be forgot_

_Hufflepuffs are patient _

_And always kind in thought_

_Now don't be afraid_

_Learn which house you belong_

_So come now_

_Put me on!_

And the Sorting began.

"AUBURN, ALLISON," called Headmaster Flitwick.

"RAVENCLAW!"

"ADAMS, BRENT"

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

"BROWN, DESIREE"

"GRYFFINDOR!"

The Sorting went on and on, while Rose nervously twiddled her thumbs.

"MALFOY, SCORPIUS"

Rose watched Scorpius grin as he was Sorted into Slytherin.

"POTTER, ALBUS"

Whispers echoed around the room as Harry Potter's son placed the Hat on his head. It sat there for a moment, until…

"SLYTHERIN!"

Rose gasped along with the rest of the room as Albus made his way to the Slytherin table. For a moment, their eyes met and Rose was surprised to see that Albus looked strangely unperturbed. He took his place at the table coolly, despite the odd looks that his Housemates were giving him. For a long moment, time seemed to freeze as everyone in the room stared at the youngest Potter boy. But the silence was broken by the sound of a Slytherin who shouted, "TAKE THAT, GRYFFINDOR! WE'VE GOT POTTER!"

The Great Hall was suddenly filled with cheering Slytherins and protesting Gryffindors requesting that Albus be ReSorted. A shocked looking James was screaming, "I DIDN'T MEAN IT, AL! I WAS JOKING!"

Flitwick finally got everyone calmed down and the Sorting continued, but Rose's mind was still focused on Albus. He seemed to be making out well, and Rose was pleased for his sake that they had sat with another Slytherin on the train. But suddenly she remembered that she still had yet to be Sorted, and a cold, dreading feeling engulfed her body.

"_The Sorting Hat isn't going to put you in a House where you don't belong just because your family is there."_

But she took little comfort in those words when she remembered what her father had said on the platform.

"_You better be in Gryffindor or I'll disinherit you."_

She knew that he had been joking, but it was clear that he would be disappointed if she was not Sorted into his old House.

"WEASLEY, ROSE"

With sweaty palms, Rose approached the Hat and sat down on the rickety wooden stool. She bit her lip, a nervous habit that she had acquired some years ago, as the Hat began to speak to her.

_"Another Weasley, eh? Lord, your family breeds like vermin. It seems like only yesterday I was Sorting your grandfather (Arthur was it?) into Gryffindor. He would have done well in Ravenclaw too, but he struck me as more of a Gryffindor. And then there was you father, Ronald Weasley, pleasure to Sort him. He was a definite Gryffindor, the only other House I would have considered was Hufflepuff, but he seemed rather opposed to that idea. He kept on telling me, 'I want Gryffindor. Ravenclaw wouldn't be _too_ bad, but I want Gryffindor,' Now, there was no way I was putting that boy in _Ravenclaw_, so Gryffindor it was. And he did well in it if you ask me. Now your mother-"_

_"Excuse me,"_ interrupted Rose, _"but last time I checked, you were Sorting _me_, not my parents. And anyways, there are still some students who need to be Sorted, we don't want to keep them waiting, do we?_

_ "Cheeky little thing, aren't you? But you needn't worry about the other students; time slows down while you're wearing me."_

_ "You mean-"_

_ "You could wear me for what seems like hours, and it would only be a minute, maybe even seconds to the others. But you do have a point, I've gone rather sentimental in my old age, and it is you I'm supposed to be Sorting. So, I suppose you'll want to be in Gryffindor with the rest of your family?"_

_ "You mean I get a say in my House?"_

_ "I'll take your choice into account if that's what you mean. Oh, but you don't want to be a Gryffindor, do you?"_

_ "Well, it wouldn't be too bad, I suppose, but, well, but"_

_ "Don't worry, I understand, I've had plenty of students in the same situation as you. Anyways, you don't strike me as a Gryffindor."_

_ "Do you think I'm a Ravenclaw? I'd like to be a Ravenclaw."_

_ "Maybe, you're a smart girl, Rose Weasley. But you seem more cunning than clever to me."_

_ "Cunning? Oh Merlin, no! Dad would kill me!"_

_ "Albus would be happier with one of his cousins in his House, Rose. And besides, you're a true Slytherin. I could tell from the moment you put me on. I'm tired of Sorting a bunch of Muggle-hating idiots into that House, because they're too pathetic to go anywhere else. But you're everything Salazar wanted for his House. It's a rare specimen, but occasionally I'll meet someone like you."_

_ "Is that why you put Al and Scorpius into Slytherin, because they were too pathetic to go anyplace else?"_

_ "No, Albus belongs in Slytherin too, but for different reasons than you. And Scorpius, well, all conversations I have with students are strictly confidential."_

_ "Oh, I see. So there's nothing I can say to get you to not put me in Slytherin?"_

_ "I'm afraid not, but it's not a bad House, and you'll be happiest there, I'm sure."_

_ "Well, I suppose you're right, Dad will just have to deal with me being a Slytherin."_

_ "That's the spirit! I'm glad you decided to listen to me."_

_ "Yes, yes, can you get on with it? The feast should start soon, and I'm rather hungry."_

_ "Alright, alright, try some patience, will you? _SLYTHERIN!"

The room fell silent for the second time that night, as Rose cheerily hopped off of the stool and walked over to her House table. But the applause came more quickly than it had for Albus, for after all, the students reasoned, if a Potter was in Slytherin, why should the Weasleys miss out on all the fun?


	4. The Defense Professor

A/N: I don't mean to complain or anything, but I'd really appreciate it if I got some reviews. I understand that the whole "Albus goes to Hogwarts, gets Sorted into Slytherin, makes friends, and goes on adventures! Yay!" thing has been done a million times before, but I like to think that this is going to turn out a bit different. I have a few ideas for this that I don't think have ever been done before. Anyways, I'd really appreciate getting feedback, positive or negative, on this. And now, without further ado, I present the latest installment of this story...

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><p>Disclaimer: I think you can work this one out for yourself.<p>

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><p>The sound of hushed voices leaving the Slytherin first years boy's dormitory woke Scorpius up the morning of his first day of Hogwarts. Sleepily, he glanced at his watch.<p>

"Dang it," he muttered; he would be late for breakfast. Really, would it have killed his roommates to wake him up? He threw on his Hogwarts robes and ran to the Slytherin boy's restroom. He took a moment to glance in the long cracked mirror above the sink. He splashed some water on his face before walking back to the dormitory, where Albus sat on his bed, still in his pajamas.

"Well, it's nice to know I'm not the only one who can't get up on time."

"What are you talking about?" Albus mumbled, "I'm on time." His head began to droop, "I'm perfectly… punctual." He collapsed onto his bed.

Scorpius tapped him on the shoulder. "Breakfast started five minutes ago."

Albus' eyes flew open. "What? Oh, dang it!" He sprang out of bed and then checked his watch. "Oh ha ha. Very funny, Scorpius. It's only- Wait, that can't be the time."

"Let me see your watch." Scorpius grabbed Albus' wrist. "It's a Muggle watch; those are useless at Hogwarts."

"Why?"

"Muggle technology is overpowered by the sheer amount of magic in the school. It's like that in all the other places with a high volume of magic; like the Ministry, for example. I'm surprised you didn't know that. Haven't you read _Hogwarts: A History_?"

"Oh Merlin, you've actually read that book? No one does, that's the first thing my dad told me when I got my copy. It's like a symbolic thing, everybody owns the book, but nobody ever _reads_ it. Besides you. And my Aunt Hermione. And come to think of it, Rose has probably read it too. And maybe Hugo. But nobody else. It symbolizes, er, laziness and hatred for education, I guess. What time did you say it was?"

Scorpius reminded Albus what the time was and watched in amusement as Albus attempted to change into his robes while running to the portrait hole. It resulted in a lot of tripping and falling until Albus finally gave up and stood still. They climbed through the portrait hole and made a dash to the Great Hall.

"Well don't you two look lovely today," said Rose with an evil grin as they sat down at the table, panting.

"Apparently…my watch…doesn't work…Hogwarts…A History."

"I did tell you that you should read it." Rose chastised her cousin. "I really did tell him," she said to Scorpius. "But does he listen? No, of course not."

"Well apparently there is some sacred ancient tradition of not reading the book that neither of us was informed of."

"Is there now? Well I'm glad no one told me about it; I don't particularly fancy rushing in halfway through breakfast. And speaking of breakfast, you best be getting some, we should be getting our schedules soon."

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><p>Half an hour later, students with robes lines with both Slytherin green and Ravenclaw blue sat together in the crowded Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom. The young wizards had arrived over ten minutes ago, but the professor still had yet to make an appearance. Scorpius had long since grown bored of Albus telling stories of what the class had been like when his parents were at Hogwarts and was watching Rose talk with a group of Slytherin and Ravenclaw girls.<p>

Rose was very nice, Scorpius concluded, and seemed to make friends easily. He had always had trouble getting along with other people and couldn't help but be jealous of Rose's people skills. It wasn't that Scorpius was actually unpleasant; in fact, he liked to think of himself as a rather nice person. But after the war, his family wasn't exactly well liked, and people tended to make… assumptions of his personality. People tended to avoid him or be less than nice_. Much_ less than nice.

The students abruptly stopped talking at the sound of footsteps echoing across the room. Step. Step. The children slowly looked around the room, but no one was out of their seat. Step. Step. Scorpius could see the faint smudge of a footprint, one after another, being imprinted by something unseen. Step. Step. The teacher's chair was pulled out by something that didn't seem to be there.

A wand appeared and floated into the air. The students held their breath as time stood still. It twitched, and a middle aged man appeared in the chair. Layla Bennett, a Slytherin girl, screamed and grabbed an annoyed Ravenclaw's arm.

"Magic," the teacher said, "a truly remarkable thing. Wave you wand and the most mundane, time-consuming tasks have been completed."

He stood up and started to pace the aisles of desks, occasionally pausing to stare intensely at a student.

"Because of magic, we don't have to slave away like Muggles just so we don't have to live in filth. Muggles are actually quite impressive; wizards don't realize how hard they work every day. In a way, they make us seem rather lazy, really."

"Last time I checked, this was Defence Against the Dark Arts, not Muggle Studies." Scorpius whispered to Rose, who smirked.

"But my point is, magic spares us from a lot difficulty. But magic has a darker side." He paused in front of Scorpius' desk. Scorpius could feel every pair of eyes gazing at him. "Doesn't it Mr. Malfoy?" Without waiting for a response, he continued. "Some wizards are not content with the convenience that magic readily supplies them with; they seek to expand their power, to use it for evil. They recruit followers, discover new, darker forms of magic that, for the time being, will remain unspoken."

"If you don't talk about them, how are we supposed to learn how to stop them?" Rose said under her breath, giggling.

"They are Dark Wizards, and in this class you will learn how to defeat them! Now, many professors of this subject will teach you how to thwart boggarts, red caps, and other mildly annoying creatures. They," the wizard waved his hand dismissively, "are not a problem."

"Actually, red caps are kinda dangerous and been known to eat humans alive," muttered Scorpius, "but hey, if having a creature known for its acidic saliva eat you just seems 'mildly annoying', then who am I to judge?"

"If you want, you can look up the spells that will stop them for a little while. But a Killing Curse will bring down every single one of them."

"We get to kill stuff?" Rose's eyes widened, "Cool!"

"Shut it, you two," hissed Albus, "I'm trying to listen." Rose and Scorpius rolled their eyes, but stopped talking.

"In this class, you will learn how to bring down your greatest enemy, the adult wizard. For although wizards are just as vulnerable to the Killing Curse as any magical creature, it would be useless if your opponent possessed a Horocrux."

At the word Horocrux, several people gasped.

"But you said you weren't going to talk about those," accused a student.

"There are darker forms of magic than Horocruxes. But those shall not be mentioned until your NEWT year." The Slytherins and Ravenclaws groaned with looks of disappointment on their faces. "My name is Professor Kane and my job is to prepare you for the _real_ world, where life isn't sunshine and butterflies, and instead there are wizards trained in extreme forms of Dark Magic that are trying to kill you in incredibly gruesome ways." The students stared at the teacher in wide-eyed curiosity. "_Scate." _The students gasped.

"Ow! That hurt," cried a Ravenclaw girl and Albus sniggered as her friend berated her,

"It's only a Stinging Spell, Ramona. Honestly, it's extremely mild; you're hardly supposed to feel it."

"Excellent job, Miss Markham, it is indeed a Stinging Spell, 5 points to Ravenclaw. Miss Cornet, I apologize for using you for this demonstration without your permission. However, had you been paying closer attention, you would have noticed me looking at you and would have dodged my jinx in time."

"But that's not fair!" The students turned and looked at Rose who sheepishly sank back down into the seat that she had so hastily leapt out of. "With all due respect, Professor, Ramona had no reason to expect a Hogwarts professor to attack her; it's not fair to expect her to know to jump out of the way."

Professor Kane grinned, rubbing his hands together in an almost malicious manner, "A point to Slytherin, Miss Weasley, for bringing up the purpose of today's lesson. Expect everything."

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><p>"That was bloodly brilliant!" gushed Albus. "The best lesson ever!"<p>

"We've only had one lesson so far today," Scorpius pointed out.

"Yeah, but could anything get better than that?" Scorpius shrugged and Albus wondered at his lack of enthusiasm.

"The man's an idiot," complained Rose.

"Exactly," said Scorpius,"do you realize how much of what he said totally conflicted with actual fact?"

Albus reflected on the previous lesson. Professor Kane had given a fascinating lecture on strategy that famous generals had used in previous Wizarding Wars. The moral of every story he told, however, was expect everything. Still, some parts of the stories _might_ have been exaggerated, and some did seem to conflict with things that Albus had thought he'd known.

"I still think he's brilliant," he muttered.

"It's a wonder you're not in Gryffindor," Scorpius remarked, and Rose nodded.

"Come on, we've got Herbology with the Gryffindors," she said.

The three Slytherins hurried through the crowded Hogwarts corridors and then into the grounds where they waited outside the Greenhouses with the Gryffindors. Albus couldn't help but notice that the Gryffindors were glaring at him like he had betrayed them. He couldn't help but feel a little guilty for not making more of an effort to convince the Sorting Hat to not put him in Slytherin.

"_Not Slytherin, not Slytherin, anything but Slytherin."_

"_Why not Slytherin?"_

Albus remembered being confused by the Sorting Hat's question.

"_Because it's Slytherin. It's the jerk House, the one with the Dark Wizards and the people I'm not supposed to get along with."_

"_I'm surprised with you. That's an awfully naïve assumption to make."_

"_You don't mean you want to put me there!"_

"_It wasn't my first choice for you, but I think it might be the best one. You need to become a bit more opened minded."_

"_But- but, I'm a Potter and a Weasley, and we're not Slytherins."_

"_Have you really been happy with that though? Being just like your family? Don't you resent the way people point at you and say 'There goes Harry Potter's son! Looks just like him, doesn't he?' I know you hate being famous for being your father's look alike."_

"_I- I- I love my family, though. I love Dad and Mum and James and Lily-"_

"_Being different than them doesn't mean you don't love them."_

"_But you said Slytherin wasn't your first choice for me. I don't want to be in the wrong House just to be different."_

"_Don't worry; you'll be a good Slytherin."_

"_Well… okay then. Make me a Slytherin."_

"SLYTHERIN!"

It was hard to believe, but Albus didn't regret his choice. He liked being in the same House as Rose and Scorpius, and he was getting along well with the other students in his year. But the Gryffindors' glares made him wonder: had he betrayed his family? He hadn't spoken to James since yesterday; did his brother blame him for not being a Gryffindor? He didn't had much time to worry though, because Neville, er, Professor Longbottom opened the door to one of the Greenhouses to let them in.

The children couldn't help being impressed with the Greenhouse. There was a highly impressive array of all types of magical plants. Most of them moved and one of them nearly succeeded in kidnapping a boy in Gryffindor. Fortunately, Professor Longbottom managed to pull the boy back before the plant could suffocate him.

"Be careful, Mr. Hurley. Devil's Snare is rather dangerous."

Albus edged closer the plant; he remembered the stories his father had told him about his own experiences with Devil's Snare.

"The same goes for you, Albus."

"Sorry, Nev- I mean, Professor Longbottom."

Everyone enjoyed the lesson. Neville was quite a good teacher, and managed to make even something as dull as plants seem very interesting. He explained what the Devil's Snare was and how to protect against it. Albus couldn't help but feel rather knowledgeable because his Aunt Hermione had already given him a lecture on the Devil's Snare when Uncle Ron had told him and all the cousins the story of how they stopped Voldemort from stealing the Philosopher's Stone in their first year. It still blew Albus' mind just how epically awesome his parents and Aunt Hermione and Uncle Ron were. His dad was far too modest about it all, so Albus usually had to ask Uncle Ron to tell him the stories about what happened when _he_ went to Hogwarts.

At the end of the lesson, Albus, Scorpius, and Rose started to head off to Potions class with the Hufflepuffs, but Neville stopped them.

"Al, Rose, can I have a word?"

"We'll catch up with you later," Rose told Scorpius, who nodded and headed back to the Castle by himself. Albus and Rose walked back into the Greenhouses with Neville.


	5. The Ghost in the Bathroom

Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to me in a dream world where I ride a unicorn to school and eat rainbows for breakfast.

* * *

><p>Rose was, admittedly, a tad nervous. She hadn't disappointed Professor Longbottom, had she? He had seemed perfectly normal during the lesson, but maybe he was just disguising his loathing of them now that they were in Slytherin. That theory was a<em> bit<em> ridiculous, she decided, but she wasn't ready to dismiss it entirely.

"I, er, I just wanted to make sure you two were alright," he said once they were alone, "After the Sorting, I got worried about you. No one's giving you any trouble, are they?"

Albus and Rose stared at him, opened-mouthed. "You mean you're not angry at us?"

"What? No, of course not. Why would I be?"

"Because we're, you know, in Slytherin."

"I'm not going to be angry at you because in your House. I just want to make sure that you're doing okay in it."

"Don't worry, Professor Longbottom, we're fine-"

"Yeah, Neville, we're doing great! The Slytherins are really nice!"

"They all think that I'm a rebel or something, which they think is really cool. I'm not of course, but I don't mind them thinking I am."

"We sort of are, though! Aren't we? Being in Slytherin isn't exactly the status quo in our family."

"I suppose…"

Neville laughed at them, "Well, you two ought to head off to your next class."

Albus and Rose left the Greenhouses feeling considerably better, both sporting confident grins.

* * *

><p>"Oi! Malfoy!"<p>

Scorpius turned around to see a group of Gryffindors following him. _Oh dear. I am _not _in the mood to deal with this. _He quickened his pace. _If I can just make it back to the castle-_

"Hey, I'm talking to you." The boy grabbed Scorpius' arm and pulled him closer. "It's not polite to walk away when someone is talking to you." Scorpius was very aware of the fact that he was outnumbered. Oh, _why_ did Albus and Rose have to be held back after class?

"Let me go," he said trying to shake himself from the other boy's grasp. The Gryffindor tightened his grip.

"You know, I don't think I will. You see, I know all about how you've been hanging out with Weasley and Potter. What are you trying to do, convert them to evil?

"No, I'm not-"he said trying very hard not to roll his eyes.

"Sure you're not. I know what you Slytherin types are capable of. Sneaky, you are. You're trying to make them Death Eaters!"

It took every fiber of Scorpius' self control to not bang his head against a wall. That, and the fact that the nearest wall was about fifty feet away. "Um, no. Last time I checked, the Death Eaters were defeated, like, twenty years ago."

"Listen, Malfoy. Your whole family's been evil since, like, ever and so I reasoned," the Gryffindor tapped his head as if to indicate his phenomenal thinking abilities, "that you must be evil too!"

"Well, although you do have _some_ logic on your side there, I can assure you, I'm not evil."

"Ah ha! You would say that if you were evil!"

Scorpius stared at him for a moment. "And what would I say if I wasn't evil?"

"Umm…" The boy looked confused.

Scorpius smirked, "It's no wonder intelligence isn't a Gryffindor quality."He said and then realized that was a _really _stupid thing to say.

"Hey! Don't insult Gryffindor!" The boy lunged at Scorpius and succeeded in punching him in eye before he managed to back out of the circle of angry Gryffindors and ran back to the castle, sprinting through its various hallways until he was quite sure he had the lost his pursuers. On the downside, though, he was lost himself. He probably deserved that, though, he had been rather rude and he supposed that insulting Gryffindor wasn't exactly going to earn him popularity points.

He wandered into the first room he could find, hoping that someone there could tell him how to get to Potions. To his disappointment, the room was empty. Disappointment quickly turned to relief, however, once he realized that he was in a bathroom. A _girls'_ bathroom, no less.

He hastily turned to leave, when he heard a girl's voice.

"Oh, hello." The ghost of a girl rose out of one of the bathroom stalls. "You're a boy. What are _you_ doing here?"

"I, uh, got lost," he stammered, feeling rather embarrassed.

The ghost girl sighed dramatically, "Oh, I see. You got lost. You didn't want to talk to me. _No one_ wants to talk to Myrtle."

"I'm sure that's not true. Plenty of people must want to talk to you."

"Oh really? Name one."

"Well, I'm new here. I'm only a first year. I don't know that many people. But I'll talk to you!"

"Really?" Myrtle brightened up considerably. "Talk to me now then."

"I'd love to," Scorpius said, feeling rather sorry for Myrtle, "but I'll be late for class."

Myrtle broke out into sobs. "You're just like the rest of them! Some other boys said they'd talk to me and I haven't seen them in twenty years!"

"No, stop crying! I really will come back, if I can ever find this room again. But, I can't afford to be late for Potions on my first day. Hey, do you know how I can get to Potions?"

"I'm not telling."

Scorpius groaned in frustration, "Ugh. Please Myrtle."

"No."

"Alright, how about you tell me where Potions is, and we can talk on the way there."

"You mean I have to leave the bathroom?"

"Yeah, is that problem?"

"Well no, I just like to stay in bathrooms."

"And that doesn't seem a tad gross to you? Well, whatever floats your boat. But can't you at least leave the bathroom once?"

"I've done it before and I'll do it again, it's just not my usual form of travel."

And with that they left the bathroom.

"Hey Rosie,"

"What is it Al?"

"Where's Scorpius?"

"He's… oh, uh, I'm not sure."

Albus felt rather worried. "You don't suppose he's gotten lost, do you?"

His cousin bit her lip and then nodded, "That's probably it."

"Oh, alright then." Albus decided to trust Rose's opinion. She was, after all, the smart one.

The Slytherin and Hufflepuffs were waiting for Professor Slughorn to let them into the Potions classroom. Albus had already met his Potions professor, as he was the Head of Slytherin House. Slughorn was a good natured, rather obese man, who seemed to particularly like Albus and Rose. About a week before Albus had left for Hogwarts, his dad had warned him to not let Slughorn "collect" him, whatever that meant.

"Hey guys," Scorpius said, running up to them. "Oh good, I'm not late."

"What happened to your eye?" asked Rose.

"I ran into a wall," he said, shrugging, "Very clever, I know."

"Very," Rose agreed.

* * *

><p>AN Reviews are the only form of payment a fanfiction author receives.


	6. Owl Post

Hello my lovely readers! I'd like to thank you all for adding this to your Story Alerts and Favorites, but I'd REALLY appreciate some reviews. I'm going to try something different in this chapter: letters home from the characters. Some of you have met and some you have not but either way, it's a way for you to get to know some of the characters and their goings on. Please review to tell me what you think of it. Do you think that there should be more of it or should I get rid of it entirely? Even a short review would make my day!

* * *

><p><em>Dear Mum and Dad,<em>

_ I'm a Slytherin. I'm sorry. I know Dad said it doesn't matter, but it does. Rose is a Slytherin too, though. I never saw that coming, but she really seems to be fitting in well. I'm also doing well in Slytherin; it's not nearly as bad as I thought it would be. Me and Rosie made a new friend too, Scorpius Malfoy. I know you didn't get along with his dad back when you were in Hogwarts, but he's really nice! Well as nice as you can be when you're a Slytherin anyways, which I suppose sounds a bit hypocritical but it's true. _

_ Classes are pretty cool. I really like the Defense professor, Professor Kane. He seems pretty impressive, but Rose reckons that he's an idiot. Neville is a great teacher and Herbology seems to be off to a good start. And Dad, I think you used to go out with the Transfiguration teacher, Professor Chang? Her name sounds familiar._

_ Is Lily coping? I bet she's still throwing a fit about not being able to go to Hogwarts. Just two more years, Lils! Anyways, I'm sorry about Slytherin._

_ Love,_

_Albus_

* * *

><p><em>Dear Mr. and Mrs. Ronald Weasley (a.k.a. Mum and Dad)<em>

_ Hogwarts is really cool. History of Magic is a bore, but only because Professor Binns teaches it. If we actually had a competent teacher, it would be quite interesting. Mum, you should write a letter to the Board of Education; having a teacher like Binns could severely compromise my education. I'm enjoying all my other classes; I really think I'm going to like Charms, even though Professor Smith isn't particularly pleasant._

_ I'm also making lots of new friends. The girls in my year are all so nice, but mostly I'm hanging out with Al and this other boy, Scorpius. I know you told me to beat him on every test, Daddy, but us being academic rivals doesn't mean we can't be friends in real life._

_ Mum, how's the Zabini Case going? And Daddy, have you and the other Aurors caught Yaxley yet? I hear that ever since Uncle Harry got rid of the Dementors in Azkaban, the security has really sucked. Maybe if you got some Aurors to guard it instead of those barely qualified prison guards, the percentage of breakouts would decrease. Say hi to Hugo for me. I can't wait until we're both at Hogwarts. We'll show them what us Weasleys are made of! Well, the Granger-Weasleys at least; Hogwarts has had more than its fair share of Weasleys. _

_ Love,_

_Rose _

_P.S. By the way, I'm in Slytherin. Not what I expected, but you have to admit, I look fabulous in green._

* * *

><p><em>Dear Mum and Dad,<em>

_ So far Hogwarts has been very nice. I'm in Slytherin (no surprises there) although Mum did have some strange notion that I was going to be a Ravenclaw, but Mum gets weird ideas about a lot of things (don't deny it, you know it's true). But you'll never guess who's also in Slytherin: Albus Potter and Rose Weasley. There's quite a few rumors going on about exactly _how_ they got in Slytherin (they're actually Death Eaters in disguise, they've been brainwashed, they're evil and are trying to take over the world, the Sorting Hat's gone insane, etc.), but they seem pretty cool to me. I know that Dad was sort of mortal enemies with their parents, but Al and Rose are Slytherins, so they're okay. I think you'd like them, especially Rose; she's awesome._

_ As far as classes go, I think that this will be a pretty dull year. The Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher is a self absorbed idiot, who all the Gryffindors think is brilliant, because he acts like Mad-Eye Moody's evil, and much stupider, twin. History of Magic is completely ridiculous, because of that awful ghost teacher, Professor Binns (honestly, the man's dead, I think it's time for him to retire). Transfiguration, Potions, and Charms are alright, just not particularly exciting. The only class with a notably good teacher is Herbology, and if he continues to be a good teacher, Herbolgy might end up being my favorite class. Which is sort of sad because, come on, it's _plants.

_ Sincerely,_

_Scorpius_

* * *

><p><em>Dear Lily,<em>

_Guess what. Al and Rosie have betrayed us! They have joined the enemy. Yes, the enemy I speak of is no less than the House of Slytherin itself! And no, I'm not joking, they were both Sorted into Slytherin. Who would have believed it? I know I've been saying Al was going get Slytherin, but I was just joking. Louis did the same to me when I first started Hogwarts. I know, it's sad, but we must now mourn the loss of having a brother that was not evil. A moment of silence, please. Done? Good, now I can tell you the really important stuff. _

_ I need you to give this message to the Anonymous Benefactor: The New Marauders currently cannot play the prank you suggested. You know, the BIG one. I can't write it down here, lest someone find this letter and steal its sheer brilliance. The only problem is, we need the Invisibility Cloak for that and Dad told Al that he could use it this year. Originally we were just going to induct Albus into the New Marauders, but we can't now because of our strict NO EVIL PEOPLE policy. So the plan is off until we find another way to not be seen. So we we're going to do the brownie sponge one for now; it shouldn't be too hard to convince the House Elves to serve our delicious homemade "brownies" at dinner._

_ Bye,_

_James_

* * *

><p><em>Teddy-<em>

_ Seventh year has started and I am so excited! I'm sad that this will be my last year as a Hogwarts student, but I also can't wait to enter the adult world. I got a taste of that during my internship at Madame Malkin's and I think there's a good chance of getting a full time position there. I am, as usual, far too involved with school activities for my own good (I know I get stressed easily, but what can I say? I'm a joiner). I'm Head Girl, commentating Quidditch matches, a member of the Dueling Club, Charms Club, and the Gobbstones team, and it's only the first day. I'm exhausted just thinking about it. The Sorting Ceremony was certainly a surprise; little Albus and Roise were Sorted into Slytherin! I just hope that Fred and James don't give them a hard time__. __You know how they can be._

_ Lots of Love,_

_Vic_

_P.S. I miss you._

* * *

><p><em>Dear Maman and Dad,<em>

_ School is good. I guess I'm kind of nervous, since it's my O.W.L. year, but I think I'll do okay. I'll keep an eye out for Louis and make sure he stops acting up with James, Fred, and that Finnegan kid, but to be honest, I don't think you should worry. A third year like him thinks he's way too cool to hang out with a bunch second years. _

_ There's been an interesting turn of events; Albus and Rose were Sorted into Slytherin. I never thought them the type (especially Al, that kid doesn't have a mean bone in his body), but I guess they've shown their true colors._

_ Love,_

_Dom_

* * *

><p><em>Dear Uncle Charlie,<em>

_ Hey, it's Louis. I just thought that because you don't have any kids to write you from Hogwarts, no one would tell you what's gone on and trust me, you want to hear about this. Uncle Ron will probably tell you eventually, but we all know that he can be rather forgetful. So here it goes: this year is Al and Rosie's first year at Hogwarts, and there's been a surprising new development. They got in Slytherin. Can you believe it? Rose has always been a bit different, but I always assumed that she would get Ravenclaw. And Al's always been a good kid. How did this happen?_

_ Your nephew,_

_Louis_

* * *

><p><em>Dear Lucy,<em>

_ Hey Luce, how have you been? I hope you're managing without me. So guess what? Al and Rose got Sorted into Slytherin. I would pay good money to see the look on Uncle Ron's face when he finds out. Uncle Harry would probably be less entertaining, but I still haven't figured out what Aunt Ginny will do when she finds out. Ask Lily to tell me, will you? So, everyone's been going on about how Rose and Al are the first Weasleys (well technically, Al's a Potter) that weren't in Gryffindor. Ummm… have they forgotten about me? Because last time I checked, I'm a Weasley and I'm in Ravenclaw. Oh well, sometimes people can be forgetful._

_ Love,_

_ Molly_

* * *

><p><em>Dear Dad, Mum, and Roxi,<em>

_ So as you've no doubt heard twenty times over, Al and Rosie are Slytherins. Tell Uncle Ron not to get his knickers in a twist, will you? Slytherins may not be the nicest of blokes, but they're dead useful if you need someone sneaky. James doesn't get how this is a good thing, but he's not exactly the brightest candle on the menorah if you catch my meaning. School is good. I'm thinking about trying out for the Quidditch team because the Keeper graduated last year._

_ Love,_

_Fred_

* * *

><p><em>Dad-<em>

_ So far the New Marauders haven't pulled any major pranks but we were wondering if you could send us some of your firework products. James gave us a new idea from an "anonymous benefactor", but we can't do it yet. Trust me though, when we do do it, you will hear about it. It's pure brilliance. _

_ -__Fred_

* * *

><p><em>Dear Mum, Dad, and Sophie,<em>

_ Second year is off to a good start. Fred and I have been thinking about trying out for Quidditch. James' little brother got Sorted into Slytherin, and now he keeps going on about how he betrayed him and isn't any fun. Poor bloke. _

_ Love,_

_Carl_

* * *

><p><em>Dear Mum and Dad,<em>

_So its Gryffindor apparently. I know Mum was hoping for Ravenclaw like her, but Dad and Aunt Pavarti were both Gryffindors. I know that Dad is thrilled right now and is probably collecting the money from your bet (and yes, I _do _know about that). Classes seem alright and I believe that Mum went to Hogwarts with some of the teachers. And you can tell Aunt Pavarti that i'm keeping an eye on Sean. I've mostly managed to keep him out of trouble, though he did try to start a fight with a Slytherin the other day- but you know Sean; that's just how he is._

_Love, _

_Desiree_

* * *

><p><em>Dear Mum,<em>

_I'm a Gryffindor! You told me that it was the best House, so I told the Sorting Hat to put me there and it did! That's because I'm a true Gyffindor, right? Guess what; that boy you told me about, Harry Potter, his son is in my year but he got put in Slytherin! I already hate Slytherins and I think that they're trying to convert Potter to evil! I'll tell you more when more stuff happens!_

_Love, _

_Sean_


	7. An Inconvenient Truth

The days were going by remarkably fast, and as the end of her first week at school approached, Rose was forced except an inconvenient truth; she was not nearly as clever as she would like to think. Her whole life people had gone on about how she was just like her mother and she would be just as smart when she went to Hogwarts. For a while, she had believed them. But lately, she was beginning to prove to herself and the whole world that she was not Hermione Granger's twin. This wasn't exactly a good thing; after receiving her letter to him, her father had sent her a rather embarrassing Howler, expressing his disappointment at her being "A BLOODY SLYTHERIN! ROSE NYMPHADORA WEASLEY, HOW COULD YOU DO THIS TO US! HAVEN'T YOU LEARNED ANYTHING ABOUT SLYTHERIN? THEY'RE EVIL, ROSE, EVIL!" There were good things too, though; people were learning not to expect her to be a carbon copy of her parents, so she didn't feel _too_ pressured to be just like them. But lack of brain power was definitely a downside to not being her mother's clone.

She was studying religiously, spending long hours doing homework in the Slytherin common room, and borrowing the Invisibility Cloak from Al so she could sneak into the library and her marks were still only slightly better than Al's. Scorpius, on the other hand, was top of the class and doing far too well, in Rose's opinion, which was extremely frustrating, seeing as she had promised her Dad that she would beat him in every class. She was beginning to see why the Sorting Hat had refused to put her in Ravenclaw.

Slytherin suited Rose and she got along well with the Slytherins, for they, as she had told Professor Longbottom, seemed to think she was some sort of rebel. The way that the Gryffindors regarded her, contrarily, was cold and angry, as if she had somehow personally insulted them. Some Muggleborn third years had even gone so far as to yell at her, "Think your better than us, huh, Weasley?" But other than the Gryffindors, everyone else seemed to have adjusted to having a Potter and a Weasley in Slytherin.

But on this particular day, Rose was dealing with far more pressing matters than being a Slytherin; she had Potions homework.

"What on Earth," she cried, throwing her hands in the air and attracting attention from some of the students in the common room, "is the difference between monkswood and wolfsbane?"

"One starts with an 'm' and the other with a 'w'," said Albus, who was sorting his Chocolate Frog Card collection. "Come on, Rosie, you've read _One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi _more times than I can count, you should know this."

"If only," Rose said wistfully, holding her head in her hands, "You'd think I'd have it memorized by now, but I can't remember a single bloody fact."

"Profanity is bad," commented Scorpius, who had just entered the common room, returning from one of his long and annoyingly frequent conversations with that irritating ghost, Moaning Myrtle.

"Bloody is not a swear word," Rose said primly, "and even if it is, it doesn't change the fact that I can't remember the difference between monkswoood and wolfsbane."

"First of all, yes it is," said Scorpius, who was now watching Albus sort his Chocolate Frog Cards, "and what would your mother think if she heard you?"

"Oh, shut up. "

"And secondly, the difference between monkswood and wolfsbane is-"

"NO! YOU CAN'T TELL ME OR I WON'T LEARN!"

Rose was, despite all her differences, still her mother's daughter.

"Weasley," said another first year, Cooper Zabini, "do be quiet."

"Oh, shut up, Zabini," snapped Rose, returning to her homework.

After he had finished sorting his Chocolate Frog Cards, Albus said, "I just remembered, I'm supposed to visit Hagrid today; he's invited me to tea."

"Oh, I want to go too!" Rose declared, standing up and letting her schoolbooks, which had previously been sitting in her lap, topple to the ground.

"You have homework," Scorpius reminded her, pointing to the pile of textbooks on the ground.

"Oh, bugger homework," said Rose, waving her hand dismissively, "I'll get it all wrong anyways. I'm going to Hagrid's!"

"Well, have a nice time, then," muttered Scorpius, who had picked up one of Rose's books and was flipping through its pages absentmindedly.

"You could come with us, you know," Rose said.

"No thanks, I think I'll stay here."

"Come on," said Al, "Hagrid's really cool. You'll like him."

"I'm sure he is; I've just heard more than enough stories about his bloody thirsty Hippogriffs that enjoy mauling students."

"Oh, right," remembered Rose, "It was _your_ father who got attacked by Buckbeak in my parent's third year. Well, as long as you're not rude, you've got nothing to fear from Hippogriffs, and I'll make sure that they stay away from you anyways."

"Well, all right then. I'll go with you two."

* * *

><p>"Scorpius? Yer name is really Scorpius?" The half giant was staring at Scorpius in wonderment after Al and Rose had introduced him.<p>

"Er, yes."

"Isn't it sad?" piped up Rose, "Imagine going through eleven years of life being named Scorpius. I don't know how he manages."

"Do you at least have a normal middle name?" asked Albus, "Or at least one that's less strange?"

"Not exactly," said Scorpius, feeling rather self-conscious, "it's Hyperion."

Albus, Rose, and Hagrid stared at him.

"Tha'," Hagrid said, "Is just sad."

"Did your parents hate you?" said a concerned looking Rose.

"You know what you need?" Albus said as he thoughtfully stroked an imaginary beard, "A nickname. You know, something people can call you when they feel too embarrassed to admit that they know someone named Scorpius."

"Good idea," said Rose with a look of deep concentration, "Something shorter. And less evil sounding."

"Like Scorp," said Hagrid.

Rose quickly rebuffed that idea, saying that it still sounded far too evil. She then suggested Scor, which everyone (excluding Scorpius, as no one thought to ask his opinion and he reasoned that arguing with them would yield no results) decided was an excellent idea.

* * *

><p>Sean Miller, first year Gryffindor, was conducting surveillance on the enemy. Desiree Brown was not amused.<p>

"Please tell me your not stalking Malfoy again," she said as she sat next to him at the Gryffindor table in the Great Hall. She had been best friends with Sean since they were in diapers, but lately, Sean gotten rather… obsessive.

"_Dezzie_," Sean said impatiently, "I am _not_ stalking Malfoy; I am _spying_ on my archenemy!"

"Who doesn't even know your _name_; much less that he's your archenemy."

Sean sighed. _How could she not understand his logic?_

"Dez," he said in a tone one might use on an ignorant child, "He. Insulted. _Gryffindor_."

Desiree had had a feeling that Sean might bring that up, considering he had spent the last few days ranting about the indignity of it. Sean was a great believer in House loyalty, not that Desiree wasn't; Sean and his endless ranting just got rather annoying after eleven years of knowing him.

"Sean," she began, her voice patronizing, "That's what Slytherins do. We've had a House rivalry going on with them ever since Salazar Slytherin got thrown out by the other Founders. They insult us. We insult them. It's just how it goes. Stop worrying about it. And, to be fair, you were kind of provoking him."

Sean sighed, "Whatever. Slytherins are lame. And super evil. I- I want to get back on those them!"

Desiree understood what Sean meant. As much as she pretended it didn't, Malfoy's comment had offended her. She prided herself on being quite intelligent, and to be fair, intelligence wasn't a Slytherin quality either. Although, if Malfoy only had experience with Gryffindors like Sean, she couldn't really blame him for his opinion on her House. She opened her mouth to reassure him that they would get their revenge in winning the House Cup, when she was interrupted by a group of boys who had just walked over to them.

The new arrivals appeared to be around second year, there were three of them, all Gryffindors. One of them was rather tall, one was on the shorter side, and one was in middle. The average sized one had sandy hair and a mischievous grin. The tall one was a redhead who looked at them seriously, and the shorter one, who appeared to be the leader of the group, had auburn hair and appeared to be trying very hard to look mysterious and impressive.

"You're right," he said to Sean, "Slytherins _suck."_

"They're evil," contributed the blonde.

Sean nodded, looking rather confused.

"And you've only had one experience with them," warned the redhead. "They get worse."

The leader leaned in close to Sean, mere inches away.

"Don't you wish you could do something about them?" he asked.

Sean nodded again. "Of course. But how?"

"I dunno," the leader said, shrugging.

"Oh."

"But," he continued, "that's one of things we're trying to figure out in our," he glanced around the room as if checking if anyone else was there, which there was; they were in the Great Hall during lunchtime, "_secret society_."

Desiree snorted as Sean's eyes widened.

"Secret society? Cool!"

The leader nodded, "You know, kid; I think we could use someone like you. If you're interested, meet us at the Astronomy Tower at midnight tonight."

The three boys walked away, leaving two confused first years behind them.

* * *

><p>"Hey, Al."<p>

Albus turned around to face the boy talking to him.

"Oh," he said, as he saw his brother, "It's you."

"Well, that was quite the welcome, considering we haven't had a chance to talk to each other in at least a week," James Sirus Potter smirked at his younger brother, "But you're right, let's spare the pleasantries; I need to speak to you in private."

Albus sighed. He had just come back from Hagrid's with Rose and Scor and had been looking forward to going to bed.

"Alright, but it had better be quick."

"Don't worry little brother; this won't take too much time off of your evildoing." James quickly pulled Albus into a deserted corridor and said, "I need the Cloak."

Albus' eyes narrowed suspiciously, "Why?"

"Er, personal reasons?"

"Well in that case… no."

"Come on Al," whined James, "At least I'm asking permission instead of just stealing it. Unlike_ some_ people I could mention," he muttered darkly.

"What do you mean? Did someone try to steal something of yours?"

"Tried, and succeeded. But you'd know all about that wouldn't you?"

"What are you-"

James interrupted him. "At least now it's a fair trade. The Map for the Cloak. But I guess you wouldn't know about fairness, would you?"

"James-"

"But seriously, Al, I didn't know that you even knew that I _had_ the Map!"

"James-"

"You know what your problem is? You've got no conscience."

"_James-_"

"And then you went and got yourself Sorted into Slytherin! How could you do this to me, Al? You're such a- Oh, did you say something?"

Albus rolled his eyes, "Look, James, I have absolutely _no _idea what you're talking about."

"Sure you don't."

And with one last disgusted look, the eldest Potter boy walked away from his little brother, muttering about betrayal.

* * *

><p>AN: And the plot thickens! Yes, there <em>is <em>a plot to this madness, in case you were wondering. So, now you've met Desiree and Sean, Scorpius has a nickname, James is up to something, and someone has take a map. Hmmm... I wonder what map anyone could _possibly_ be talking about in a Harry Potter story(hinthint). Thank you so much to Ileana Mackenzie Collins for reviewing! Keep reviewing, everybody; it really makes my day!


	8. The New Marauders

AN: Hey guys... so I obviously haven't been around in a long time and a lot of you have probably forgotten about this story. But I'm going to update this story to tell you that I have a few chapters prepared in advance that I will be putting up at a hopefully consistent pace, but once I get caught up to the point where I've written the story's going to be tentatively abandoned, meaning, I plan to get to it eventually, but it will take a while. Sorry, guys. Anyways, here's chapter 8 of the story...

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><p>"<em>Please<em> tell me you're not really going to do this."

"It's the right thing to do."

"It's the _stupid_ thing to do."

"Think of the opportunities!"

"Think of the detentions!"

"I'm leaving."

"I'm coming with you."

_What on Earth did I do to get stuck with this kid as a best friend? _Desiree wondered as she followed Sean through Hogwart's corridors. _Maybe I should move on, make friends with some of the girls in my year. _

"Come on, Dezzie!" Sean called, running up the Astronomy Tower's stairs._ Then again, this idiot needs me._ She ran to the top of the Tower with Sean, which had the both of them panting for breath.

"We didn't ask _you _to come," Desiree looked up at the red haired boy who was looking at her curiously.

"I wanted to."

The boy frowned and then shrugged. "Alright then, I doubt it'll hurt to have you here."

The other two boys said hello to her and Sean and then asked them to sit down. The five of them sat cross legged in a circle on the floor as the auburn haired one began.

"Right, well I suppose we'd better start by introducing ourselves. I'm James Sirius Potter."

"Fred Gideon Weasley II, "the redhead introduced himself.

"And I'm Carl Dean Finnegan," said the blonde. "Why is it we're using our full names, Prongsie?" he asked, looking at James, who shrugged.

"Now tell us _your_ names," he commanded.

"Sean Rupert Miller."

"Desiree Margret Brown."

"Why did _you _come, Desiree?" James inquired.

"Someone has to keep an eye on Sean."

"And you don't trust us with that?" asked Carl.

"No."

"Fair enough, I suppose," he said. "Though I don't know what we're going to use _you _for; Gwen's already our Lily."

"Your what?"

"Our Lily. We've already got one. Gwendolyn McMillan."

"Gwendolyn _Theresa _McMillan," corrected James. "_Oh Gwen," _he sighed with a love struck look on his face.

"She can't stand him," Fred informed them.

"Yes, and I don't know why!" pouted James.

"Might have something to do with that time you proposed to her."

"I was in love!"

"You were eleven! Anyways," he continued, "She's been a bit scared of him ever since that."

"That's, um, too bad," said Desiree, "But what's a Lily?"

The three boys exchanged glances.

"Well," said James, "I suppose I'd better start at the beginning.

"A long time ago, back when our grandparents were still at Hogwarts, there were four boys. Their names were James Potter (my grandfather), Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, and Peter Pettigrew. They were all Gryffindors and they were all awesome! Well, except for Peter; he kind of sucked, but that's beside the point. The four of them were best friends, they pulled epic pranks, and they never let themselves get bothered by Slytherins.

"Then, in their third year, they learned a terrible secret; Remus was actually a werewolf! But instead of this forcing them apart, it brought them closer together. They called themselves the Marauders and turned into Animaguses to help Remus get through his monthly transformation. They gave themselves code names. James, the stag and the leader, was Prongs. Sirius, the dog and loyal sidekick, was Padfoot. Remus, the wolf and the responsible one, was Moony. And Peter, the rat, was Wormtail. They pulled even better pranks, were even less bothered by the Slytherins, and in seventh year James even got the girl of his dreams, Lily Evans.

"Everything seemed to be going right for them, until tragedy struck. A Dark Wizard named Voldemort found out about a prophecy saying that a child born at the end of July to parents that had thrice defied him was the only one that could defeat Voldemort. There were only two children that fit that description and Voldemort decided that it was Dad, I mean, James' son. So, James and Lily went into hiding with Sirius as their Secret Keeper. But Sirius panicked and asked them to make Peter their Secret Keeper instead. It wasn't too difficult for Voldemort to convince cowardly little Peter to betray them and frame Sirius. James and Lily were dead, Sirius was in Azkaban, and Peter had faked his own death to avoid suspicion. But Lily had died to save her son, so when Voldemort tried to kill him, he died instead. Except, he didn't, what with all the Horocruxes and stuff, but that's irrelevant.

"These days, the four Marauders are dead, but it is us who makes sure that their legacy lives on! We are the New Marauders and we have all our members except a Wormtail, because we're trying to be careful and get one that's not evil. And that," he said, looking at Sean, "Is where you come in."

"You want me to be your Wormtail?"

"Uh huh. Originally, we were going to use my little brother, Al, but he got Sorted into Slytherin, so that option's out."

"Which Marauders is each of you?" asked Desiree, curious.

"I'm Prongs," said James.

"Padfoot," said Carl.

"And Moony," said Fred.

They all looked at Sean, who appeared to be considering their offer.

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><p><em> "Why do we want this kid?" Fred had asked James after they told him to meet them in the Astronomy Tower.<em>

_ "He's a better candidate than my brother."_

_ "So are half the other kids in this school. Why him?"_

_ "I dunno," James had said, scratching his head, "I just have a good feeling about this kid; I can just tell that he's the Wormtail that the Marauders never had. This one will stay loyal."_

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><p>"And I'm Wormtail," said Sean, grinning, "Definitely Wormtail."<p> 


	9. The Eviltality of the Press

AN: Hey so hopefully you guys haven't forgotten about this story (you probably have since I've been so long in updating it, in which case I would reread some of the chapters as long as you're still interested. I can't believe I started writing this story over a year ago! Anyway, as I told you in my last update: this story is abandoned. I've just forgotten to post the rest of the chapters. There's one or two chapters left, which hopefully I will post soon. I hope eventually I will return to writing this story. But between school, theater, and tumblr (my username is sherlockxholmies in case anyone's interested XP), I haven't had much time. Ideally I'll finish this story and then edit it, considering I've written everything in this fic when I was in middle school and I''m a sophomore now, so hopefully my writing has improved. Thank you all so much for reviewing, following, and favoriting this fic, it is much appreciated.)

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><p><em>Golden Children Join the Dark Side<em>

_ Tragedy struck the famous "Golden Trio" earlier this week when two of their children entered Hogwarts for the first time. Though Albus Potter is his father's spitting image minus the trademark scar and rumor has it that Rose Weasley has inherited her mother's brains (Hermione Weasley recently won Witch Weekly's Cleverest Witch Contest for the nineteenth year running), these two eleven year olds are hardly the heroes that their parents were. Far from it, in fact; they've been Sorted into Slytherin._

_ Since the creation of Hogwarts, Slytherin has had a reputation for Muggle hating. In fact, its founder, Salazar Slytherin, was one of the first wizards to discriminate against NonMagical peoples. The House has many other disturbing factors as well. For example, it is the Heir of Slytherin that can open the Chamber of Secrets which terrorized Hogwarts in both 1942 and 1992. It should also be noted that every major Dark Wizard that attended Hogwarts as a child was Sorted into Slytherin and that there were no Slytherins that fought on the Order of the Phoenix's side during the Battle of Hogwarts. In fact, You-Know-Who himself was an ancestor of Salazar Slytherin and intended to make Slytherin the only Hogwarts House if he succeeded in killing Harry Potter. After the Second Wizard War, disestablishing the House was considered._

_ So what are a Weasley and a Potter doing in such a notorious House? Surely someone related to the "Golden Trio" is certain to be a Gryffindor? Could it possibly be that the children's Sorting was a conspiracy attempting to ruin the honorable Potter name? Well, according to their cousin, Dominique Weasley, perhaps not._

_ "Rose has always been a bit odd," the beautiful blonde part Veela informs us. "She has the strangest sense of humor." When asked what she means, the Gryffindor fifth year replies, "She has an odd tendency to point and laugh when someone falls off their broom. Everybody else is trying to help and see if they're hurt, but she's just sitting on her own broom, shouting stuff like 'That was a beautiful fall! Teach me, please!'" In response to our wondering if Rose possesses any blatantly Slytherin qualities, she tells us that Rose cheats at Quidditch and once stole Dominque's younger brother's bag of Chocolate Frogs. "And what about Albus?" we inquire. "Al is constantly following Rose around; he really looks up to her. He's always been a sweet kid, but he's not the sharpest tool in the shed, so he relies on Rosie a bit."_

_ So there you have it. A malicious, cunning girl who has twisted her mother's brains to her advantage in order to lead her dimwitted cousin to the Dark Side. Using her intelligence, loyal cousin, and her parents' and uncle's influence, Rose Weasley could very well become the next You-Know-Who…_

_ -Lisa Turpin_

"WHAT THE-"

"Language, Rose," Scorpius, or Scor, as so many seemed to be insisting on calling him these days, reminded.

Albus was scrutinizing the morning's edition of the Prophet carefully.

"I'm not stupid," he said slowly, "Right?"

"Of course not," Rose said soothingly. "This Turpin woman is going to pay."

But how _would_ she pay? Rose was fairly certain that Aunt Ginny knew Michael Corner, the Prophet's editor. Maybe she could call in on some favors and get Turpin fired. Then Rose would sue her, acting like an innocent victim of a heartless woman trying to ruin her reputation, and then she would destroy her both financially and reputation-wise. And somehow, somehow, she would find a way to pull Dominique down the deep pit of ruin and despair as well…

Just then, Who-Cares-What-His-First-Name-Is-Even-Though-Scor- Says-It's-Cooper Zabini, being the eavesdropping git he was, commented on the fact that if you switch the N and the P in Turpin around, you get Turnip.

"No one cares, Zabini." _Poor Lisa_, thought Rose, _named after a turnip_. She almost felt sorry for her.

Almost.

Zabini snorted indignantly and turned to resume his conversation with Layla.

Rose leaned in to whisper to Albus and Scor, "I've got a plan; Turnip is going down."

"That's not very nice, you know," commented Albus.

"Just relax," advised Scor, "Slytherins have had a bad name ever since the Second Wizard War, and you two getting Sorted into it was bound to attract some attention."

"Exactly; I'm a Slytherin. I think I'm entitled to _some_ malicious plotting." The two boys looked at each other skeptically, as Rose continued, "So here's what we do. Al, I need you talk to your Mum about-"

"Making plans, are we?" James had walked up them and fixed them with a dramatic, suspicious glare.

Just as Rose opened her mouth to say yes we are, thank you very much, now go away, a boy that she vaguely recognized from Herbology and Transfiguration stepped out from behind him, accompanied by Fred and Carl, "_Evil_ plans, by any chance?"

Rose opened her mouth yet again, only to be interrupted by Scor.

"Not_ you_ again."

Rose turned to her friend, "How do you know-"

The Gryffindor interrupted her, "Save it, Malfoy. Your twisted eviltality won't work with me; I'm a Marauder now."

"You weren't supposed to tell him that, Wormtail!" shouted James. "I mean, Sean."

"Ignore what I said," Sean told Scor.

"Eviltality isn't a word," Fred said quietly, but nobody noticed, because they were too busy watching Sean launch into a speech about how that morning's Prophet had proved Scor's eviltality because he had _obviously_ made Albus and Rose evil, because there was no way that they could be evil naturally, because they were related to _Harry Potter_ and people related to Harry Potter couldn't be evil, because Harry Potter was as unevil as they came.

"Did you even _read _the article?" asked Rose, "Because, Sean, or Wormtail, or whatever your name is, it clearly says that I am evil naturally and that Al isn't evil, just stupid."

"But I'm not," said Albus, just to clarify.

The boy's faced flushed, "Whatever. I've got my eye on you, Malfoy. You too, Weasley." And with that he and the second years left.

"Who was that?" Rose asked Scor.

"I'm not sure," said Scor, "an idiot of some kind."

"Do you want to go yell at Dominique?" asked Al.

Rose, bit her lip, considering her options. On one hand, yelling at people always made her feel better and Dominique certainly deserved to be yelled at, but on the other, she was fairly certain that Albus was just trying to distract her and she wanted to tell Al and Scor about her evil plans.

"Ok," she decided and they walked over to the Gryffindor table.

"DOMINIQUE GABRIELLE WEASLEY! YOU-"

"Language, Rose."

"SHUDDUP, SCOR! DOM, YOU ARE A HORRIBLE, TERRIBLE, AWFUL, ATROCIOUS, DREADFUL, SAD EXCUSE FOR A HUMAN BEING! I DID _NOT _STEAL LOUIS' CHOCOLATE FROGS AND I DO _NOT_ CHEAT AT QUDDITCH! I BEND THE RULES, YOU HEAR ME? I TAKE THE RULES, AND THEN I BEND THEM! BUT I DO NOT CHEAT!" she panted for a bit, gasping for breath. Dominique looked slightly shell shocked. Rose was unremorseful. "We're done here," she told Albus and Scor. As they went back to their table, Headmaster Flitwick advised her to take a chill pill. She politely refused.

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><p><em>Dear Aunt Ginny,<br>No doubt, you were as horrified as I was by the contents of this morning's Prophet. I have heard that the Prophet's editor, Michael Corner, is your ex-boyfriend, and rumor has it that he still has a thing for you. I would be very much obliged if you could convince him to fire the despicable reporter who wrote the article, Lisa Turpin. I'll take care of the rest._

_ Thanks,_

_ Your Loving Niece,_

_Rose Weasley_

Ginny Potter carefully examined the letter. Her niece really was a true Slytherin. She hoped that she would keep an eye on Al, who like the Prophet had said, wasn't very smart.

_ Dear Rose,_

_ Of course I will. Don't worry about a thing, dear._

_ Lots of Love,_

_Aunt Ginny_

She picked up the pot of Floo powder. It would be nice to catch up with Michael, she supposed.


End file.
